Here are a few tips to stay cool this summer.
- As always, keep your furnace filter clean! Some filters now can last up to a year. If you are not sure about your filter give us a call. With a few simple questions, we can get an idea of what type you have and suggest an average life expectancy.
- Keep all your supply and return registers free of being covered or blocked. Furniture, clothes, and other items may be blocking or restricting air flow. (This will stop or reduce the air flow needed to cool that area or room.)
- If possible keep the blinds or draperies closed or tiled to reflect the heat out of the home and not into the home, especially during the hottest part of the day. (Insulation keeps heat inside during winter, but it also keeps the heat out in the summer.)
- Keep your thermostat at a consistent temperature. (Find a comfortable temperature in your home and leave it set. If programing a schedule 1-2 degree change is reasonable.)
- Check the outdoor air conditioner. Make sure that it has clear space around and above it. Make sure it is not covered by over grown by vegetation. (We like to see about 12” of free space around an air conditioner and about 5 feet above it.)
Although it may seem logical, air conditioning is not cooling your home. The reality of an air conditioning system is heat transfer. Refrigerant in the air conditioning system absorbs the heat from inside the home (in the evaporator) and transfers it to the outdoors (though the condenser). The process simply repeats itself as the refrigerant flows through the system.